Drier weather to help Pismo Beach assess bluff erosion caused by winter storms and determine ways to prevent further damage
PISMO BEACH, Calif. -- Drier weather in the forecast will help the City of Pismo Beach assess recent bluff erosion in Shell Beach that was caused by winter storms and also give it time to try and determine ways to prevent further damage.
On Monday, a clear, blue sky, along with bright sunshine helped create postcard-like views all throughout Shell Beach.
"It's just magnificent with the cliffs and the ocean and the whitecaps today because it's windy," said Elyn Brennan, while visiting From San Francisco. "It's spectacular. It's just beautiful."
It was a marked contrast to many days this past winter when unrelenting stormy weather pounded the city's coastline.
During some of the bigger storms, including one that hit the region hard on January 9, 2023, some of the bluff areas in Shell Beach saw dramatic parts of the coastline erode and fall into the ocean below.
"When you live in a coastal city and a coastal city on a bluff, it's something that you deal with constantly," said Ben Fine, Pismo Beach Public Works Director. "When the ground gets saturated, the erosion is accelerated and typically, we don't see minor erosion. We will see little bits, but typically, we see episodic erosion and episodic failures, and so, we'll lose a big chunk at a time and then we won't lose anything for a while, and then, we'll lose another big chunk, and this is one of those times when we're losing big chunks."
Two areas were hit particularly hard during this past winter, both along different parts of Ocean Boulevard, which runs non-contiguously along the coastline.
A memorial bench and telescope viewing area at Elwayen Ocean Park had some of the ground underneath it erode away, leaving an edge of the concrete literally suspended in mid-air.
Several blocks away along the roadway near Margo Dodd Park, a large crack formed at a bench viewing area. Some of the bluff area also fell off and slid into the water, which was captured dramatically on video by a visitor as it happened.
In response, Pismo Beach has placed barriers at both locations to prevent people from getting too close to the dangerous spots.
Fine pointed out that erosion on the Shell Beach bluffs has slowed recently, but it still ongoing.
"It's a dynamic situation," said Fine. "We have seen some bluff failure and bluff erosion throughout the entire city and along the coast. Some areas have seen more than others. There has, in the last couple of weeks, been additional failures along Ocean Boulevard, near some of the privately owned beach accesses, we've seen some additional failures as well."
All throughout the wet winter, Pismo Beach has been keeping close tabs on the coastline.
"We have a pretty robust bluff inspection program," said Fine. "During normal circumstances, the bluffs get inspected pretty much quarterly. During situations like this, it's definitely much more fluid and depends really on the weather, but we get eyes on it at least once a week. If there's any kind of rain or precipitation, immediately following that event, or even during that event, we'll check on the bluffs, and then after that event, we'll do daily checks to make sure that everything is safe to keep people protected."
The recent cliff erosion comes at the same time as the city's Ocean Boulevard Improvement Project continues on. Construction started nearly one year ago in late April 2022 in order to repair damage bluff face and infrastructure.
"That project was the result of bluff failure we had from a previous storm," said Fine. "We saw some failure and it was actually undercutting the curbline and really causing a threat to our infrastructure. With the storms that we've seen and the impact that we've had from the ocean and the rain, without that bluff protection, it would be a completely different circumstance out here right now."
Fine added he expects the project to finish sometime by early summer.
"We have seen a little bit delays," said Fine. "We are expected to be done in June. Right now, the crews are out doing concrete work ahead of paving, so they're redoing cross gutters and the curb ramps. Then they will be out here paving Ocean Boulevard."
For those who live and visit the area, they say they are happy that Pismo Beach is proactively addressing the situation.
"It's sad that's happened, and I suppose it's somewhat due to climate change, and somewhat due to just years and years and years of the ocean beating against it," said San Francisco resident Betsey Cutler, while visiting Shell Beach on Monday. "It's great that it looks like Shell Beach is really trying to save the cliffs as much as possible and hopefully, everybody's houses and the road so people can enjoy this gorgeous spot."
With little to no rain in the immediate forecast, Fine believes the drier weather will benefit Pismo Beach as it continues to find solutions to keeping the bluffs as intact and safe as possible.
"This will give us some time to catch our breath," said Fine. "It's been a very wet winter as everybody knows, which has really stressed the Public Works crews, so it will give us a time to pause and catch our breath and assess the situation and determine what the next steps will be."
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